Cole vows to reward City fans

June 17, 2006

ANDY COLE: Eager to get back to action

ANDY Coleés premature end to his season coincided with Manchester Cityés dramatic end of term collapse.

The Blues won only two league games after Coleés knee injury curtailed his campaign after a 3-2 victory over Charlton last February.

And the former Manchester United favourite believes had he stayed fit then Cityés fortunes could have been a lot different.

éIéd like to believe that if Iéd been in the team and playing well we could have got to the semi-final of the FA Cup é and maybe even to the final.

éBut I was sitting on the bench and watching and there was nothing I could do to help.é

Manager Stuart Pearce hopes to have both Cole and Darius Vassell back in harness before the start of next season.

Cole admits ités been a frustrating time. éI had expected to come back after six to eight weeks, I wasnét expecting to be out so long. I was getting cheesed off.

Injury

éIt was a nothing injury and I have been fortunate with injuries.

éIt was a routine jump, I felt a bit of pain in my knee and that was it.é

The former England marksman still finished with a healthy quota of 10 goals.

éHopefully I can go through next season uninjured and reach my goals so the team can finish in a higher League position than last season.é

Cole eventually needed surgery to repair the damage before beginning his rehabilitation. And the 34-year-old has paid tribute to Cityés backroom staff for putting him on the road to recovery.

éThe medical team are going to monitor me through the pre-season and my aim is to get fit before the start of the season and Iéll go from there. I cannot speak highly enough of the medical staff. I donét think they get all the credit they deserve because they have been working their socks off.é

How much of a difference do you think Cole's injury made to City's season? Have your say.

For our latest World Cup video report from Germany, click here.

| Submit Comments | Comments (20) |

Showing comments 1 to 20 and replies | View All

Psycho, Stade de Manchester (17/06/2006 at 12:02)

The advert about rubbish in the middle of every City story is wearing at bit thin now lads. You really are a bunch of tools working for the MEN aren't you

Gerry Hay, Wigan (17/06/2006 at 12:24)

ominous to read "hopes"to be fit for the start of the season ... code for he might be ready for Christmas .. sounds like the same story for this season promising youths but too many injury prone aged players !!

Simsim, Finland (17/06/2006 at 14:01)

One of the reasons why last season went a bit bonkers was indeed because of Coley's absence. But there were others as well who got injured, like Reyna and Vassell's hernia. I've said this before and I say it again; everyone can just quit talking about possible relegation next year. We are way beyond that now, our team is too good for that to happen. CTID

Pie in the Sky, Manchester (17/06/2006 at 14:04)

Gerry Hay, Wigan, don't worry Cole will be back for the start of the season. As long as he doesn't get injured in the warm up games. Just as a point of order ED, why have you get a link to the MU Travel company for all the trips United will be making in their warm up games? I hope they (MU) are paying for this link? If not then why haven't you put a link on here for City's tour to China?

Peter Hirst, Glossop (17/06/2006 at 14:25)

Re: Pie in the sky.
Good point. Also, in the index list of club pages, why are United top of the list. Surely clubs should be listed in alphabetical order? And why a page for FC United? Why not one for Stalybridge Celtic, Hyde Utd, Altrincham etc. We know why it's known as MUEN.

ted knott, droylsden (17/06/2006 at 15:41)

for a player knocking on 35 no one can criticise his optimism but after six games or so he'll be back in the treatment room.Furthermore wev'e heard it all before all these vows,pledges,promises and assurances they all turn out to be empty ones.Looking at our present squad I have to ask "is it the oldest in all the football league?" is Pearce making sure we stay up hoping such experienced players stay fit whilst the young players gain more experience themselves? that could be the case and to an extent I'll go along with that,BUT and its a BIG BUT if the worst senario happened and we went down then the club would be in big big trouble and certainly would find it hard getting back simply because some of our young hopefuls plus our better senior squad members would move move on.However it would make me feel a lot easier if Pearce got his priorities right and signed some MIDFIELDERS who could win the ball,pass and create,better still lead the team from the middle.>>>> Roy Paul,Johnny Crossan,Mike Doyle,Tommy Hutchinson,Eyal Berkovic,Ali Benarbia and Paul Power ALL WINNERS something our team lack today I'm afraid.

simon johnson, alty (17/06/2006 at 15:51)

unless Wardle ,Makin,Mackitosh,Tyrell,Tueart & Co dont step aside our club will be totally finished within ten years,our great stadium will become a concert venue and FC United will be a bigger club,make no bones about it we have everything in place to take us into oblivion all the way from a mediocre and AGING squad to a board seemingly hellbent on destruction and that includes the CLUELESS STuart Pearce!!!!!!

mark, bluefield (17/06/2006 at 15:59)

Yet again, absolutely nothing happening at city, so we get a re run of a story like this one. What next, Barton promises to clean up his act for next season. Boring, totally boring.

Mike, Cheadle (17/06/2006 at 17:13)

there are a lot of bored people out there.....

CK, Sale (17/06/2006 at 21:31)

Unless narrow minded short sighted likes of Simon Johnson get a grip then the club might be finished!!!

Podge, Sandymount (18/06/2006 at 03:01)

I missed Andy's presence in the team towards the end of the season, believing he could have added at least another 5 or 6 goals to his tally had he not been injured. At his age, that speaks volumes about this model pro. That performance and win over West Ham back in October when Andy grabbed a brace had me dreaming of Europe and an FA Cup Final, but my dreams were agonisingly dashed as we fell away badly. Surely injuries and fitness must be key to how we do next season, given our paper thin squad. PS. World Cup comment - Ghana were AWESOME - the best display I have seen so far, even better than the Argentines' against Serbia and Montenegro. The potential in that team is frightening. If only they weren't so wasteful in front of goal...CTID

Richardinho, Toronto, Canada (18/06/2006 at 06:44)

Relegation beckons... shut up you lot. I think relegation could turn our fortunes around. We'd lose alot of the wasters at the club and bring through our academy, which would push for a top six finish no prob. Maybe all you moaners are like karma trying to turn the club around. We can't all be optimistic but we all are family, so try acting like it...blue4LiFe

Richardinho, Toronto, Canada (18/06/2006 at 06:46)

Billy Q, Bury (18/06/2006 at 10:56)

Just got back from 3 weeks holiday and am totally un-surprised by the lack of anything upbeat on here. While I was away I read Stuart Pearce's biography and enjoyed it thoroughly. One thing it brought home to me was his totaly refreshing honesty throughout his career. I just wish that he would apply that now as it seems as though he is just trotting out the same old tired stuff fed to him by the PR department. One example is the same old comments during each transfer window along the lines of "I am looking at getting in 3 or 4 players", followed a couple of days later by "2 or 3 players", then "4 or five", then "a couple". I just wish that he would he and the board would level with us. On the subject of the board it appears that they are quite happy to gamble the clubs top flight status by hoping the 3 promoted clubs arent up to the step up because the alarming short sighted lack of a reasonably small investment clearly isnt forthcoming. Before the 2We dont want to become the next Leeds" lobby get on to me, waht would you rather do, add a little to the debt to keep the club in the prem and move forward, or bury your heads in the sand and get relegated thus being unable to service the debt and fade into oblivion. It pains me to see us miss out on players like Dabo, Gera, Thomert etc and instead be linked with deadbeats when the Boltons, Portsmouths and Wigans are picking up quality players, for example Wigan looking to sign Landzaat for 0.5M who is a dutch international playing at the world cup.

CTID, BLOCK 219, manchester (18/06/2006 at 11:25)

Can we please have something worth reading about on this site, i.e. Some concrete transfer news!!! If we do not get at least 5 players in (not including Hart & Dickov) then we are going to seriously struggle next season... I hope us being linked with a ??3.4 million move for spurs flop Postiga is rubbish because we need midfielders not strikers, get that midfield sorted Psycho CTID

Blue John, London (18/06/2006 at 12:07)

Sim Sim, I can only presume from your address (Finland) that you don't get to see City very often, cos if you did you probably wouldn't be quite so complacent about our staying up next season. Given that we lost 16 of our last 21 Premiership games, and are now poised to part company with our best midfielder and our best defender, I'd love to know what you base your optimism on! Failing that please mail me some of the psychotropic drugs you are clearly taking, as they seem to have an awesome effect on ones perspective!

stuart malcolm, macclesfield (18/06/2006 at 12:37)

The essence of this story tells you everything you need to know about this clubs ambitions for the coming season!

It will be heading South at speed with the usual ineffectual bodies driving the bus!!

Anyone know the way to Derby?

To Mr Wardle and his potless cronies - Money out OR get out NOW!

hongkongphooey, Filing Cabinet (18/06/2006 at 15:16)

Does this also mean that if City get relegated (and I sure they dont) he will repay the cost of our seasoncards?

Bertie Blue Nose, Eastlands (19/06/2006 at 09:26)

Peter of Glossop, I've no truck with FC United, but they're on the site for a good reason, and that is people are interested in them; they attracted crowds in excess of 4000 last season. Your point about us being behind United alphabetically is a good one, but is that all you're bothered about? Likewise the fans moaning about the ad in the middle of the text - so what? Who reads internet website ads anyway?

Harry Skinters, Sealand (20/06/2006 at 12:02)

Class is permanent. Unfortunately fitness isn't. That's why we need another proven striker. Injury prone end of career types are all very well to bolster the core of the squad - but if they are the core of the squad then you are in big trouble as a few relegated sides can tell you.

()

Report

Manchester City